Archives for February 2016

The late night fire at Admire Evergreen last week has left the building a total loss. When firefighters arrived around 10:30 last Thursday night, flames were shooting out from the large metal building. Crews battled the blaze at the facility on Highway 63 South of Kirksville into the early morning hours. The fire reignited on Friday afternoon, bringing crews back to the scene, who were able to quickly put it out. The cause of the fire is being investigated by the State Fire Marshal’s office.

The United Way of Adair County and Northeast Missouri, which funds 19 programs with 13 different agencies in Kirksville, recently celebrated their 2015 campaign. That campaign brought in about $165,000 – short of its $190,000 goal. But that isn’t stopping the organization from setting the bar high for 2016. They’ve set a goal to raise about $200,000 for this year. The 13 partner agencies throughout Adair County that benefit from the fundraising efforts include: Adair County 4-H, YMCA, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, NEMO Senior Services, RSVP, Hospice of Northeast Missouri, the Red Cross, Community Opportunities, Kirk-Tran, Macon Diversified Industries, The Salvation Army and Victim Support Services.

The United Way of Adair County and Northeast Missouri, which funds 19 programs with 13 different agencies in Kirksville, recently celebrated their 2015 campaign. That campaign brought in about $165,000 – short of its $190,000 goal. But that isn’t stopping the organization from setting the bar high for 2016. They’ve set a goal to raise about $200,000 for this year. The 13 partner agencies throughout Adair County that benefit from the fundraising efforts include: Adair County 4-H, YMCA, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, NEMO Senior Services, RSVP, Hospice of Northeast Missouri, the Red Cross, Community Opportunities, Kirk-Tran, Macon Diversified Industries, The Salvation Army and Victim Support Services.

Filing opened last week for Missouri’s statewide, U.S. Congressional and state Senate and House offices, and some local incumbants will campaign for re-election. Representative Nate Walker, a Republican in Distict 3, is seeking his third term in the Missouri House. Representative Craig Redmon, Republican, District 4, will be seeking his fourth and final term in the Missouri House. U.S. Representative Sam Graves, a Republican, is seeking his ninth term in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Missouri’s sixth district. Graves challenger in the Republican Primary, is Kyle Reid, of Louisiana, Missour. Senator Brian Munzlinger, a Republican with the 18th District, is not up for re-election in 2016. The filing period ends March 29.

Governor Jay Nixon vetoes Senate resolution that would prevent wage increase for home health care attendants who work with elderly and physically disabled Missourians.

Governor Nixon Friday vetoed Senate Concurrent Resolution 46, saying it thwarted the will of voters. According to the governor, SCR 46 disapproved a rule setting the wage rate for personal care attendants between $8.50 and $10.15 per hour. In a released statement, Nixon said in part– “Missouri’s home-care workers deserve a raise for the difficult and important work they do. Missouri voters approved the Quality Home Care Act in November 2008 by a margin of 75% to 25%. The purpose of the Act was to address the growing need for quality home care services by creating a mechanism to increase the wages, benefits, and training for personal care attendants.))))))

There was a fire late last night at Admire Evergreen. The Fire Department got the call around 10:30PM. Law enforcement and highway patrol shut down Highway 63 going into Kirksville becaues of the heavy smoke. The cause of the fire that started inside the facility is still under investigation.

The City of Kirksville is set to break ground for a new waste water treatment plant. Julius White has more.

he public is invited to celebrate the construction of the new wastewater treatment plant. A short groundbreaking ceremony, including light refreshments, will take place Wednesday, March 2, at 1:30 pm at 23002 Atlas Lane. The new wastewater treatment plant, to be located east of the existing plant and Bear Creek, is the result of the voters approving the Wastewater Bond Issue of 2013. The new facility will replace the aging activated sludge treatment plant. The existing plant building will receive modifications that will accommodate plant employees, equipment storage, and offices.

In addition to naming a new assistant principal, the Kirksville R-III school board also approved a spending item and a budget.

This week Kirksville Primary School principal, Tricia Reger was named the district’s new assistant superintendent to replace Jane Schaper, who recently announced her retirement. Also, the school board members approved the purchase of additional Chromebooks, which will be used to help prepare students for online testing. The district will purchase 60 Chromebooks and two carts for about $16,700. Kirksville School Board members also approved the district’s second budget revision for the 2015-16 school year. The school district is projecting about $29.9 million in expenses by the end of the year. The school district is also projecting about $27.2 million in revenue by the end of the school year.

The event, hosted by the Kirksville Area Steam Alliance, focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. Discussions during the summit will be about different STEAM related projects taking place within the city and at local schools. One of the main topics to be discussed at this year’s STEAM Summit will be the planning and development of a Kirksville area Makerspace. Also, Kirksville students will show their creations made with 3-D printers, to demonstrate the importance of STEAM education.
The summit starts at 8 a.m. Monday at the William Matthew Middle School auditorium.

That’s Melissa Click — the controversial professor who was caught on camera threatening a student photographer during racial protests. Then, seen on camera at another event, cursing a cop. In the aftermath of the unrest — university decided Click had to go. Board of Curators giving her the boot with no severance. The head of the faculty council says the university did not follow its policy for addressing misconduct — but top administrators say there was an internal investigation and she was treated fairly.